30.06 plenty gun for elk?

[dave elliott]

great info as usual from the group. if i may i would also suggest a change in bullet. you just cant go wrong with 180 pills out of an 06. if your not reloading may i suggest winchester power points 180 grain or even good ol core lokts 180 grain. ive seen many tags punched with those bullets. good luck.

 

[Timber338]

I am a big fan of Barnes bullets out to medium ranges. I personally hunt elk with a 338 and have shot lots of bulls with the 210 and 225 TTSX. I stretched the 210 ttsx out to 630 yards a few years back and it performed great on a big bodied bull.

I would not be afraid to keep your 30-06 and load a 165 or 168 TTSX as a shoot everything load. I hunt with a few guys that shoot the 165 and have seen lots of bulls fall very quickly to this load. And accuracy is top notch.

 

[brd922001]

Read about sectional density which is the key to understand bullet penetration. The only way to increase penetration of any given caliber is to go with a heaver bullet. The most interesting thing is going to a higher caliber requires a HEAVIER bullet to equal a bullet of a LOWER caliber. Your 30-06 with an 180gr bullet would equal the penetration of a 270 in a 140gr bullet. Saying all this to say what others are saying is you need to use 200gr or more to make a big difference. Also, at the 220 gr range you are about max for that cartridge. Last, the 30-06 is plenty elk medicine.

 

[joseph]

If a .243 will drop an elk a 30-06 is over kill.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hY0w1c-gf18"]Kasandra Cow elk 688yds.mp4 - YouTube[/ame]

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/hY0w1c-gf18" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

joseph

 

[Timber338]

Read about sectional density which is the key to understand bullet penetration. The only way to increase penetration of any given caliber is to go with a heaver bullet. The most interesting thing is going to a higher caliber requires a HEAVIER bullet to equal a bullet of a LOWER caliber. Your 30-06 with an 180gr bullet would equal the penetration of a 270 in a 140gr bullet. Saying all this to say what others are saying is you need to use 200gr or more to make a big difference. Also, at the 220 gr range you are about max for that cartridge. Last, the 30-06 is plenty elk medicine.

I think the work of John Nosler and Fred Barnes (among others) has proven that there are in fact other ways to increase bullet penetration without increasing bullet weight... The advancement in bullet technology is why people can shoot elk with .243's with great success.

 

[Wyodog]

I have shot about 15 elk with a 30-06. my dad has probably shot somewhere around 35 elk with his and that's still what he uses today. We have always used 180 bullets, they just seam to work well in this cartridge. I have used 06 to kill elk at 500+ yards and have not had any problems. I really like the 180 grain Swift Scirocco and there is probably no way anyone could talk me into changing, this bullet it is accurate and hits very hard out of an 06. In fact....I like scirocco better in my 06 than I do in the 300.

 

[roninflag]

Raethon- the 30-06 is an awesome long range round. the are a lot of good bullets 168 tipped tsx, 165 or 180 accubond. lots of 168's the lr accubond, berger and CBT. The 30-06 is plenty for elk. what rifle?? I have shot 8 and guided guysto 37 other here in AZ. hope you got as tag.

 

[the blur]

I personally think it can be done with a .243. I'm more and more impressed by my .243 every deer season.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

I personally think it can be done with a .243. I'm more and more impressed by my .243 every deer season.

***Geez, you could also slip in and beat that bull over the head with a ballbat if you want a real challenge, LOL! Have you ever killed an elk or even hunted them to see how big they are and the punishment they can take when using improper equipment? Hit them with a caliber and bullet designed for the job and that is not the .243. As good as it is for smaller animals, it was not designed for a 700# elk, no matter how many stunt videos you watch like Joseph put up with John Burns touting his equipment. Every time I see that video or hear it mentioned I'd like to take that rifle and wrap it around his neck. That young girl had never shot a big game animal and had never even pulled the trigger on that rifle until the long shot on that cow! It was nothing but a stunt that should never have been filmed, especially with a person that had never even shot the gun before.

 

[the blur]

Any deer that I took with my .243, went bang-flop. They just fall over dead. My last deer with .243, I used the cheapest ammo from walmart. Massive exit wound.

Opposing this view, I have heard countless stories of deer that have been hit with .30-06 or 12 ga slugs, and they run for miles.

Although I'm no expert, they say it's the shock of the .243 that makes it so effective. Maybe it's the velocity, I don't know. All I know is I have 100% confidence in my .243

Maybe a bullet expert can chime in and explain it.

 

[joseph]

I have killed at least 50 white tail deer with my .243 reloaded with Sierra 85 grain HPBT Game King bullets and every one of them have died before their knees buckled. This combination and good bullet placement is devastating.

joseph

PS: I haver never hunted for elk or moose even though a friend of mine killed a 68" + (?) moose. His moose rifle stock got broken so he used his .243 wolf gun and shot the moose in the neck and it dropped in its tracks.

 

[Topgun 30-06]

Exactly as I figured! Neither of you have hunted elk and are talking how great the .243 is on deer, which I agree 100%. However, you cannot equate an animal like an elk or moose that is several times and more the body size of a deer! I have a .243 Sako that's a tack driver, as well as a MOA Ruger 25-06 and they are both great for animals up through deer-sized game. However, they both stay in the safes and the 30-06s go on all the elk hunts. Why handicap yourself with a caliber that was not made for an animal the size of an elk or moose and risk a wounding shot and a lost animal?! The blur and his opposing view about a 30-06 or slug and an animal running for miles is a lame one because they won't go far, if anywhere, when hit through the vitals. A bad hit with them just because they're bigger doesn't mean the animal will be DRT!

 

[joseph]

Exactly as I figured! Neither of you have hunted elk and are taliing how great the .243 is on deer, which I agree 100%. However, you cannot equate and animal like an elk or moose that is several times or more the body size of a deer. I have a .243 Sako that's a tack driver, as well as a MOA Ruger 25-06 and they are both great for animals up through deer-sized game. However, they both stay in the safes and the 30-06s go on all the elk hunts. Why handicap yourself with a caliber that was not made for an animal the size of an elk or moose and risk wounding and a lost animal?!

I never said that I would shoot an elk with a .243 I just posted the video to show that it was possible. If I ever get a chance to hunt elk I would use my -06 also.

joseph

 

[roninflag]

I personally think it can be done with a .243. I'm more and more impressed by my .243 every deer season.

The 30-06 is much better for elk. i have shot 8 and guided other hunters to nearly 40. That includes a bunch shot with the 30-06. I like the .243 it is an accurate and deadly round. concerning the two taken with a .243, it was lucky we recovered them . It is WAY less than optimal.